I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices employed in the sport of fishing, and more particularly to devices used to remove hooks from the mouths of fish.
II. Description of Prior Art
In the sport of fishing, one of the necessary activities is to remove the fishing hook from the mouth of the fish. This deceptively simple task is typically complicated, however, by a number of concerns. The hook normally includes a barb which prevents it from being easily pulled from the mouth. If the fish is to be released, as may be required by law in some instances, the embedded barb must be dislodged from the soft tissue of the fish without causing irreparable damage. This is especially difficult in situations where the fish has deeply swallowed the hook. Even if the fish will not be released, the hook must still be removed so that the fisherman can continue fishing.
To remove the hook, fisherman have often resorted to using common pliers, because the slippery surface of the fish does not allow one to leverage the hook from the mouth by using one's fingers alone. Most fish have pointed barbs of their own which protrude from their fins, as well as sharp teeth such as in speckled trout and flounder, which can inflict painful wounds while the hook is being removed. The use of pliers is not only cumbersome and ill-suited to the hook removal process, but it can also damage the hook. This can be extremely frustrating to the fisherman, especially when time is of the essence if there are many fish to be caught. Still another problem encountered in removing the hook is that the fishing line often gets in the way as the remover is maneuvered into position. The fishing line may also become damaged by the stretching and twisting of the hook remover, especially if the line is rubbed across the very fine, sharp teeth of some fish.
Many devices have been developed which attempt to solve the problems associated with fish hook removal. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,084,999; 4,206,561; 3,835,574; and 3,670,448 all disclose hook removers which employ an elongated rigid member having a substantially V-shaped tip for capturing the embedded hook. Of the aforementioned devices, only U.S. Pat. No. 3,670,448, issued to Wehmeyer, tries to keep the fishing line aligned with the hook remover, and this is for the purpose of locating the hook when it cannot be seen. In that patent, a separate removable cross bar must be inserted into the handle so that the fishing line can be secured to the hook remover. Unfortunately, the two-piece construction of the Wehmeyer device has the disadvantage that the cross bar may be easily misplaced in a fill tackle box, or lost entirely.
While the above devices provide some benefits, they lack at least two key features. First, none of the known hook removers includes a means of guarding the fisherman's hand from the teeth of the fish. Second, they do not provide a simple and effective way, using a one-piece unitary construction, of keeping the fishing line close to the hook remover.